Been lurking for a few days and had a little search to see if anyone had had the same problem, but couldn't find an exact match.

97 Punto 55SX (which I drive like a c#nt) had some problems last week with the radiator. That's been sorted now, but I noticed last night that the emergency flashers were... well, flashing. Which was odd because they weren't turned on. And they were flashing a lot slower than usual. I had a look around to see if there was anything obvious (warning lights on the dash etc) but nothing seemed to be wrong. While I was doing that, the lights gradually got slower and slower.

I tried starting the engine - it turned over under battery power, but wouldn't fire at all. I disconnected the battery to try charging it for a bit, but thought I'd try starting it again so I reconnected it. It started first time! Took it for a spin and left it overnight.

Same thing happened again this morning, though it coughed a bit cos I flooded it slightly. I didn't notice if the immobiliser/security/thingy light stayed on or not, but I'll check it if it does it again when I leave work tonight. Anyone seen this problem before?

new battery???

EVERYONE- SPRAY YOUR PUNTOS BLACK

Dead as in flat or dead as in dodo? That's the main possibility that I've been thinking of. Just seemed strange that disconnecting it for 30 seconds made that much difference.

Turns out the car used to have an aftermarket Clifford alarm fitted. The previous owner (cranky old woman) hated it so they disabled it. Looks like it's started itself up again now, but only intermittently. The guy at the dealership (Black and White in Cold Ash) wasn't sure what triggered it but recommend I take it to Sound Secure in Thatcham to get the whole thing properly removed. It was probably them that put it in in the first place! Apparently it'll cost about £50 or so.

Which explains why the hazard lights were flashing all by themselves, and also why the engine was turning over fine under battery power but not firing - alarm had cut off the fuel supply cos it thought the car was being nicked. Also, whenever I turn the ignition on/off all the doors lock/unlock themselves. I've always thought this was a feature of the car but it turns out this is something else that the alarm does. The car's done that ever since I bought it so it looks like they did a bad job of disabling it.

So there you go.